BioShock: Infinite Rated Mature by the ESRB for Intense Violence, Blood, Gore and “Derogatory Ethnic/Racial Terms”

BioShock: Infinite finally arrives to store shelves on March 26th, after previously being planned for February 26th, and ahead of this, the ESRB has rated the title. Receiving an (expected) ‘M’ for Mature, Infinite was described as having ‘Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Language, Mild Sexual Themes, and Use of Alcohol and Tobacco.’

The full ratings summary with very minor spoilers is below, telling you about some of the powers, intense violence, and language you’ll be experiencing next month:

This is a first-person shooter, set in a fictional city-in-the sky (Columbia), in which players assume the role of a private investigator searching for a mysterious woman. As players explore the city, they encounter a variety of armed guards, thugs, and mechanical creations that attack the central character. Players use pistols, shotguns, rifles, and machine guns to kill these enemies. A three-pronged hook can be used to dismember and decapitate several enemies. Players can also use an assortment of special powers to defeat enemies (e.g., setting characters on fire, electrocuting them). Large blood-splatter effects occur when characters are injured. Enemies are also depicted beating themselves with a bat or shooting themselves in the head when they are possessed; during one sequence, a character intentionally sets herself on fire. During the course of the game, characters sometimes engage in suggestive/sexual dialogue (e.g., “Obscenity and fornication everywhere!” “Could use a good roll in the hay after this,” “I think yeh gave me the clap, ya dirty boy…”). The game allows players’ character to obtain ‘health’ by consuming beer and whiskey; the screen turns fuzzy and distorted if the player consumes too many drinks. The social/political backdrop of the fictional city (set in the year 1912) includes the use of derogatory ethnic/racial terms (e.g., the words ‘gook,’ ‘chink,’ ‘negroes,’ ‘injuns,’ ‘crackers’); language such as ‘sh*t’ can also be heard in dialogue.

Are you getting BioShock Infinite on day one? Let us know in the comments below.

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